Polly's pages (aka 'Donna Williams')

Ever the arty Autie

Is the system keeping the ‘disabled’ disabled?

December26

Hidden Depths by Donna Williams A large percentage of adults with Aspergers Syndrome (considered a form of ‘high functioning autism’) are employable, even if only able to manage part time work or minor self employment. Chronic underoccupation and unemployment is way too common for adults on the autism spectrum with around 80% being without paid work and most of those living on disability benefits even though a significant percentage of those people also do not identify as being ‘disabled’. Read the rest of this entry »

Dear Haters… a heartfelt Merry Christmas from Donna Williams

December23

Family by Donna Williams http://www.donnawilliams.net

As a Taoist, I find the positives in otherwise negative experiences. Read the rest of this entry »

posted under Autism, autism politics, books, bullying, Donna Williams, psychology, sociology | Comments Off on Dear Haters… a heartfelt Merry Christmas from Donna Williams

My Breast Cancer Journey from An Autistic Perspective – by Donna Williams

December18

Lava Slide I went through breast cancer treatment in 2011 at the age of 47. As a person with autism the process was probably a bit different for me. Read the rest of this entry »

posted under Autism, autism politics, cancer, Donna Williams, health, psychology, sociology | Comments Off on My Breast Cancer Journey from An Autistic Perspective – by Donna Williams

ARTISM blog – art work of the month – Dec 2013 “Starman” by Donna Williams

December18

Starman by Donna Williams http://www.donnawilliams.netThis month’s artwork is titled ‘Starman’. Read the rest of this entry »

posted under arts and ARTism, Autism, autism politics, Donna Williams, ehlers danlos syndrome, health, painting, psychology, sociology | Comments Off on ARTISM blog – art work of the month – Dec 2013 “Starman” by Donna Williams

A Right to a Dignified Self-Determined Death

December16

Velveteen Rabbit by Donna Williams

Velveteen Rabbit by Donna Williams

When I have posted information about the right to a dignified, self-determined death, I find healthy young people with Asperger’s comment from a fear of Nazi like euthanasia. Read the rest of this entry »

posted under Autism, autism politics, cancer, Donna Williams, health, human rights, psychology, sociology | Comments Off on A Right to a Dignified Self-Determined Death

Autism, meltdowns and the presumption of ‘severe pain’

December15

To Live To Dream by Donna Williams Wondering in your screaming functionally non verbal child is in severe pain? Remember that a simple blood test will rule out pain if the inflammatory markers are low… it is simply fact, pain=inflammation, except in non-inflammatory peripheral neuropathy – neuropathic pain associated with nerve damage. Read the rest of this entry »

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When I was a doorbell… by Donna Williams

December12

Donna Williams aged 12 I was the doorbell… wind, wind, wind, ring, ring, ring, ring, ring, wind, wind, ring…. oh shit, they’ve replaced it with a battery one… Read the rest of this entry »

posted under Autism, autism politics, Donna Williams, Poetry, psychology, sociology | Comments Off on When I was a doorbell… by Donna Williams

The Myth of Neuro-Typicality

December7

The Outsider by Donna Williams All humans, ALL humans, have combinations of around 4-6 of these 16 personality traits.
All humans process information differently among these very different learning and information processing styles

… so what about the myth of neuro typicality? Read the rest of this entry »

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The Gadoodleborger by Donna Williams

December3

The Gadoodleborger by Donna Williams

To the Gadoodleborgers;
translators, bridgekeepers between worlds.

He spied her in a magic wood,
a sensing creature in need of none

and dreamed of how he’d join her there,
his partner she would soon become.
He lured her back to the place he knew;
a world of hierarchy and of power.

And there she then began to die,
as surely as a wilting flower.

His heart began to break inside,
he knew only one thing to give.

Return her to her sensing world,
that she might find the will to live.
And there as she began to bloom,
she saw something he’d never seen.

That he was not of that world either,
a Gadoodleborger, he had been.
That he walked between two worlds,
he now had finally understood.

And so they made their home in neither world,
at the edges of the magic wood.

The End

NOTES:

The Gadoodlborger is a term that became familiar in my book Somebody Somewhere. It denoted a person who could translate different ‘normalities’, a ‘bridgekeeper’ between different worlds. It was the highest compliment I could pay to those who understood instinctually there was no one ‘normality’ and the inherent equality in difference – what it was to be naturally and truly diversity friendly. Read the rest of this entry »

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Groucho Marx on Autism

December3

Donna Williams diagnosis controversy

Donna Williams diagnosis controversy

I AM autistic but I HAVE immune deficiencies, I HAD cancer (apparently I can’t actually un-have it, its called remission) , I HAVE Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome… I also HAVE visual perceptual disorders, I HAVE language processing disorder, I HAVE mild learning disabilities.

I do not feel I AM these things, they are not ME, they walk alongside of me, often as parts of my autism, and whilst I AM autistic, just as I AM immune deficient, and I AM mildly learning disabled, Autism is not the sum total of who I am, it does not define my entire being or personhood, even if my personality traits are achetypally relatively ‘autistic’, I remain a person WITH autism… someone who HAS autism and, ok, IS autistic. The rest is war mongering militant separatist fascist crudola

– says Groucho
“PLEASE ACCEPT MY RESIGNATION. I DON’T WANT TO BELONG TO ANY CLUB THAT WILL ACCEPT PEOPLE LIKE ME AS A MEMBER”. Read the rest of this entry »

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